The sign is a nod to a UCB skit. (Watch it here.) In any event, early word from tonight's CB3/SLA meeting is that a resident will be circulating a petition to ask UCB to change the sign for the sake of the children.

We don't have all the details just yet... (In fact, we're not even at the meeting!) However, a tipster there sent along an e-mail....

Jill at Blah Blog Blah attended the meeting, and said that Two Booths owner Phil Hartman offered to cover the cost of a new sign for the UCB.

Hartman said that he offered to pay for a new sign. If this place turns out to be bad news, he will be two for two in the neighborhood for selling to bad operators. His reputation is kind of on the line for this.

I didn't get to hear her reasoning but she did seem really upset about it (was it really because of the children?). It does seem like the term 'chicks' is really offensive to the older generation though.

Whatever makes you think "chicks" is offensive only to the "older generation?" If you would like, I can find you plenty of young women who are offended by being referred to as a sex object, which is what "hot chicks" implies.

And second, the main point is not that it is offensive language, but that it sounds like the name of a bar designed particularly to attract the frat boy/binge drinker set.

No, Phil Hartman was not the only person who brought it up. Even Stetzer brought it up in her rant about 34A, which was ridiculous since it's a totally different venue. If you find it offensive, it's fine to contact the owner. I'm pretty sure we could make anything on A offensive if we tried. This neighborhood is making San Francisco look tough.

Are these people unfamiliar with the legendary UCB skit to which The Hot Chicks Room refers? The war on fun continues, nobody will be happy until every neighborhood in NY is the UES, or at least an urban version of Scarsdale or Larchmont. Boo.

I don't think the name is offensive. It's just not particularly clever or funny. Here's an idea: UCB should have a contest and allow East Village residents to submit ideas for funny names for the place, then choose a winner and go with that name. Until people start protesting that name. Then they could have another contest and allow East Village residents to submit ideas for funny names for the place, then choose a winner and go with that name. Until people start protesting that name... Anyway, all this to say I think the place should be called We Had To Change Our Name, and my cat thinks it should be called Catnip.

This really sums up the kind of dialog going on at the Community Board these days. Ignorant, tone deaf, and unhappy people sparking fake "outrage" against trifles.

This silly sign is what inspires you? This is the activism you're passionate about?

There is something inherently rotten about a system that allows unelected board members to vote on measures pushed forward by the sorts of people who have enough time on their hands to pass around frivolous petitions and attend tedious meetings. These people do not speak for the community at large.

I attended that meeting on Monday night and the obvious biases of the chair and of the district manager were disgusting to behold. Supporting SLA license signatures were rejected for being more than 2 blocks from the address, while poorly informed activists were allowed to recite prepared canned speeches in opposition though though they lived a dozen blocks afield, and often long after the alloted time had ended.

The Community Board liquor license approval process is not a venue for blanket opposition to liquor licenses, State code provides for consideration of each application on its own merits. Nor is the Community Board an appropriate venue for venting humorless misinterpretations of silly signs.

THIS SIGN IS HARMLESS AND THIS PHONY OUTRAGE IS EMBARRASSING TO THE NEIGHBORHOOD.

Why do I feel like the eight billion pro-UCB comments (on three different posts now) are coming from the same hyper-defensive person? People are allowed to not like the sign, guy. And not everyone who dislikes it is on the community board or signed some petition (frankly I hate petitions), we're just making comments on a blog. Take a valium.

2:02, I see you're listening just as well as you did the last time this issue came up. I just said: Not everyone who dislikes the sign is on the damn community board. Speaking only for myself, I simply dislike fugly, dumb signage that is meaningless to 99% of people in my neighborhood, and have some time to kill today. OK? It's really that simple. You're borderline hysterical.

The problem is a failure to differentiate between "doofusville" aka Double Down Saloon, Nice Guy Eddies, Billy Hurricane's, and so on... and actually culturally relevant additions to the 'hood, such as the new space Phil Hartman was trying to open, or the UCB Theater -- both of which are smart concepts.

You guys don't listen, don't research, and don't know what you're opposing. You just oppose. Meanwhile, we have a sea of for rent signs and a million insanely priced upscale places. The neighborhood is getting sick of you anti-growth people. You have failed us.

No 3:12, YOU don't listen. We had the *exact* same fight last time. No one opposes the UCB. No one. Yes, the "Hot Chicks Room" sketch is crickets-inducing levels of not funny, but I think the UCB are a fine addition to the EV. Did you hear me? THE UCB IS A FINE ADDITION TO THE EAST VILLAGE. It's just the sign people here have opposed to. Just the sign. Just the effing sign!!! Christ, now *I* need a valium.

I have no idea why you refuse to accept that the opposition is limited to the UCB signage (and just the "Hot Chicks" signage at that), and instead want to constantly blow up and accuse us of being a bunch of fuddy-duddys and philistines and why don't we go save Haiti instead blah blah.

I also have no idea why I got sucked into this ridiculous non-argument with you again so I bid you good day sir, I said good day! etc. etc. yadda ad nauseum

3:28, I have no idea who you think I am or what fight we supposedly had last time, but I've written several of the posts here making fun of you guys' embarrassing fight about a mfing sign... and I have never posted about this subject before today.

Huh. I am a woman and I consider myself a pretty serious feminist and I don't get what the problem is here. I don't refer to myself or other women as chicks but I don't consider it any more offensive than grown women who refer to themselves as "girls," and there seem to be a LOT of those. Seriously, a lot. I don't personally know any men who are that dumb and fratty that they do that and I don't have any woman friends who do that, but I have worked with a lot of women who seem to think nothing of it. I always notice it, though, and I think it's a pretty gross habit.

The second issue people seem to have with the sign is the idea that it's meant to attract crappy fratty guys, and I don't get why that's a problem. If they want to gather in one place and stay out of my favorite bars and restaurants, I think that's pretty great, actually.

The third issue people seem to have with it is the idea that any reference to any woman's appearance is apparently sexist. This makes no sense to me. Some people are hot and some aren't. Men too. Some of them are extremely not hot. If there is a feminist school of thought saying that everyone is equally attractive and that as a society we ought to eradicate any and all references to anyone's attractiveness, no matter how tongue-in-cheek or fake-ironic, I'm not aware of that, and I think it sounds pretty silly.

I'm wrong, I'm full of shit, well, fine, but you're a bunch of borderline illiterates.

I honestly don't even care what happens anymore. I am bolting to Gramercy the second my landlord buys me out. Or 11th Avenue and 20-nothing. Jesus, even UES dowagers are more appealing than you freaking nu-comedy howler monkeys.

To people who don't get why it's "offensive".It's not "offensive", it's just annoying and obtrusive.Chicks isn't offensive, but that is a frat-house obnoxious sign if I've ever seen one...and it also doesn't make sense unless you know what it's referring to, which most people don't.

I like seeing a theatre here but was surprised by that sign. Hopefully it's just temporary.

This discussion has gotten really weird. As far as I can tell there is nobody who is opposed to UCB coming into the Pioneer Theater, despite their cargo shorts.

I see that it started at 8:55am with this allegation of being opposed to something nobody knows anything about, yet I can find no basis for that reasoning, nobody opposed to UCB, other than some people being not appreciating the Hot Chicks sign.

I for one don't give a shit about that sign, was just trying to explain why others might find it sexist.

I do, however, feel bad for the Ugly Chicks who I guess won't be allowed inside. As a hot chick myself, I am glad to be part of the club, as long as they continue to keep the ugly girls out. If they let in the ugly girls then we have a serious problem with false advertising and I will be calling 311 to complain.

WTF are you talking about? From the photo, the lettering looks to be all of 6 inches high. I doubt 95% of the people walking past would even notice the sign. Obnoxious? Get the stick out of your ass.

and it also doesn't make sense unless you know what it's referring to, which most people don't.

Oh, well god forbid someone be confused by something. I now foresee countless pedestrians catching sight of that sign and starting to spin aimlessly until they collapse.

I have no idea what the sign refers to, besides the vague comments above. Either I'll find out, or I won't. Either way I'll probably survive. But if you think every storefront should include a helpful sign explaining its business ("THIS IS A PLACE WHERE YOU CAN PAY MONEY IN EXCHANGE FOR ALCOHOL"), feel free to recommend it at your next community meeting.

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